by Jennifer Walker

Created on: July 24, 2008   Last Updated: June 25, 2009

Trail riding is a fun and relaxing way to spend some time with your horse. You can see some wonderful scenery while you keep yourself and your horse in shape. While there are good and bad individuals in every breed (and some who hate trail riding as well as those who love it), some horse breeds are better known for trail riding than others. A good guide for deciding which horse breed is best for trail riding is to look at what endurance riders ride-after all, these trail riders are the most demanding of their mounts.

Number One: Arabian

Arabian horses were bred for speed and endurance. They are the most popular endurance horse breed all over the world because they are hardy and can go forever on the trail. Although they have a reputation for being spooky, it is only a few of them that are this way. Of the ones who do spook at scary things on the trail, it is often just a minor reaction that is very easy to handle, and it is the same reaction many other breeds would face at the same obstacle. Another myth about Arabians is that they are hard to handle for beginners. This could be true of any horse! If the horse is well trained and gets an adequate amount of exercise, Arabians can be very nice beginner horses.

Arabian horses are one of the smaller horse breeds, but they are very strong and can carry most riders with a full set of tack for many miles. If you witness them at the end of a very long endurance ride, they often have energy left over. Because of their small size, they do not retain as much heat as larger horses and cool down more quickly, which is better for their health and your metabolics scores if you compete. They are agile, able to make their way through rough terrain or jump logs that are in your path. They have great feet, rarely experiencing soundness problems. They are also known for their friendly, people-oriented personalities and versatility, able to do well at a variety of disciplines. Many of them can go to a show one day and trail riding the next!

Number Two: Mustang

Mustangs are another horse breed that is popular in endurance riding, because they are tough, have great stamina and good feet. The Mustang breed is a modern, living example of natural selection and evolution in progress. The herds are generally left alone to evolve as nature intended until they are rounded up to prevent over population. If you are an experienced horse person, you can often buy them for less than $1,000 during adoption events and either train them yourself or

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